Tricky, Tricky
by bookwtchery
Summary: Zoe has stated that Brodi once helped her when she was "messed up in the head." Here is that story. Changed some things around but realized I have a missing file on my flash drive. More editing tonight.
1. Chapter 1

Zoe paused in the foyer to shake the snow off of her boots before opening the inner doors to the lodge. She always did this, even though she couldn't care less about tracking snow inside. This was a mountain resort built for snow sports, for the love of…snow should be expected in entryways. Besides, the steps leading into the lounge area were skid proof, so she needn't feel guilty about creating an accident-waiting-to-ambush. All the same, this was her little ritual when coming in. A pause to switch gears, she decided; a moment to contain the adrenaline, the mountain rush, before heading indoors.

The sparsely decorated foyer was small enough to feel cozy, big enough to avoid feeling claustrophobic, meant for no other purpose than to provide an extra air cushion between the indoors and the subzero weather outside. Brodi would probably say something about the in-between spaces being sacred or something equally spiritual. For Moby it was little more than something for him to rush through on his way in or out. To each his, or her, own, she thought wryly as she gave her hair a final shake and pushed her way through the inner doors.

The warm air hit her like a blanket, and she could see to her right that the fireplace was roaring as usual. No one sitting on the chairs or sofa in front of it, though. In fact, the lodge was pretty much deserted. Everyone at a late breakfast, or still out on the slopes, she figured. Whatever. She was going to take the rest of the day off, maybe take a nap, then try to meet up with Moby a little later. THAT nut was probably still out on the slopes, tearing up the mountain with his usual excess vigor.

She had to chuckle to herself when she thought about the two men she was closest to on this mountain. They couldn't possibly be more different; but then, she did get bored easily and worked hard to create variety in her life. Her big brother and her lover.

Her attraction to Moby was easy to figure out. He was hot. He was fun. He was high on life, always looking for the next adrenaline rush. He could be very sweet, though he would probably never forgive her if she ever let anyone know that. And best of all, he could take her to dinner, keep her out dancing half the night, keep her up with other things for the rest of the night, then go out and try to kick her ass on the slopes without thinking twice about it.

Her feelings for Brodi, however, were harder to figure out. When she had first come to the circuit, he had been the only male there to NOT hit on her. While under ordinary circumstances she really didn't notice what other people thought of her, he became a puzzle for her to figure out. He was attractive, she had to admit, but he wasn't really her type. Tall, blond, wholesome; really the exact opposite of what she normally went for. So of course she had to put herself in his way every chance she got. Her first strategy was to test his Zen, to see if she could make him angry, trying to knock him down on the slopes every chance she got. It never really worked; he just laughed and muttered something about realigning his chakras. Her next strategy was to try to get him to go clubbing with her and some friends. He didn't drink, so he rarely went with her. That, she thought as she swiped her key card in her door, she marked as marginally successful. The real event that cemented their friendship was the day he actually flat out refused her. It was with these thoughts on her mind that she lay down and prepared to nap.


	2. Chapter 2

As Zoe stretched out on her bed and began drifting off to sleep, she was deep in thought remembering that night.

She had been out clubbing most of the night. She and Moby had not yet developed a relationship; in fact, she was toying with the idea of dating Psymon, but that seemed to be heading in the "good buddy" direction. Anyway, she was drunk off her ass, and when she stumbled her way into the lodge, there was the walking Buddhaboy himself, sitting in front of the fireplace reading. So of course, she walked right over and plopped herself down beside him.

"Whatcha doin' sweetie?"

Brodi merely looked sideways at her and smirked. "Hey babe. Have a good night?"

"Oh yeah." She reached over and pulled the book from his hands, then stood up and fell onto him on purpose. Well, at least partly on purpose. "Care to make it better?"

She kissed him then, and for a brief moment he let himself sink into the kiss. Then he pulled back. "Not tonight, Zoe. You're drunk, sweetheart."

Zoe sat back on his lap and pouted. "Awww. No fair. It would be fun."

Brodi chuckled, then stood, picking her up off his lap as he rose. "I have no doubt of it. All the same, you are drunk and not in a frame of mind to be making decisions like this. Come on, I'll help you to bed."

"That's exactly what I want you to do."

That earned her another smirk.

"I will help you to bed, then I will leave.

And that is exactly what he did. Her weight was practically nothing to him, and he carried her effortlessly up the stairs and to her room. True to his word, he settled her into her bed, removed her shoes, and pulled the blankets over her. He even took the time to get a bottle of water from her minifridge and placed it on her bedside table. He then kissed her cheek, whispered, "sweet dreams, little one," and left. Simple as that.

Well, maybe not so simple. Zoe had been completely wasted, but alcohol had never had an adverse effect on her memory. The next morning, she remembered propositioning him and was mortified. She was fully prepared to never be able to live the event down. The only thing left was to figure out what the general reaction was going to be. He would either give her the cold shoulder, lecture her on safety, or spread rumors far and wide that he had slept with her. By the end of the day, she thought, like in the childhood games of telephone, she'd be accused of carrying Brodi Ford's baby.

But none of that happened. Brodi never mentioned the incident, to her or, as far as she knew, anyone else. No avoidance. No teasing. No lectures. No vicious rumors.

That was her first glance into the type of man Brodi truly was.


	3. Chapter 3

_(Wake me up!) Wake me up inside!_

_(I can't wake up!) Wake me up inside!_

_(Save me!) Call my name and save me from the dark._

Zoe smacked her alarm clock, waking up from her midmorning nap ready for lunch. Thank you, Evanescence, she thought bitterly as she glared at her clock again.

"Stupid radio. I like Evanescence, but did you have to wake me up with THAT? Sheesh."

Zoe hauled herself out of bed, sitting on the edge of the bed for a moment gathering her head before she went to find her shoes. Waking up had always been a painful and slow process for her. Maybe a nap was a bad idea, she decided. Probably should have found Brodi for a yoga session or something. Oh well, what's done is done. Too late now.

Thus her thoughts returned to the two men in her life. Brodi not throwing her to the wolves probably actually laid the groundwork for her relationship with Moby. Before Brodi, the male of the species had been little more than an annoyance, or an interesting diversion at best. After the embarrassing incident, she did something she'd never really done before. She talked to Brodi. In the past, the only talking she'd really done was taunting to get them to challenge her, so she could put them in their place. She found, surprisingly, that she LIKED Brodi. He was intelligent, thoughtful, kind, and had a great sense of humor. He was a bit too calm for her liking sometimes, but she had discovered another cool thing about him, too. He gave her space. He wasn't needy, didn't get his feelings hurt if he invited her to do something and she turned him down, or get jealous if she was hanging out with someone and didn't invite him.

So it wasn't long before she decided that hey, this friendship thing with guys wasn't too bad. Maybe she should try it with someone else. She set her sight on Moby, the intense, brash young dredlocked hottie from England. Figuring she'd been given a free card with "Hey, I'm drunk, let's have sex" thing, she wasn't quite willing to go there again with someone else. So, not knowing what else to do, she went the twelve-year-old route. She challenged him.

"Well, hello there, luv. What can Moby do for you today?"

"You, me. Peak 3 in 20 minutes."

"I don't know if you can handle this, sweetheart."

"I'll be waiting."

She walked away, not sure if he would take the bait. He did, and she kicked his cute little ass all the way to the Green Lodge.

"Now," she said, catching her breath as they headed into the lodge, "how about we head for burgers in the Gravitude and you tell me what else you think I can't handle, Pretty Boy."

"Pretty? Now see here…."

And thus it began. It had gone much, much further than she intended. Turned out that as much of a fireball as he was, he liked the challenge of being with a wildcat. They spent the afternoon together, even had a "date" in town. Within a week they had decided to date exclusively.


	4. Chapter 4

Moby had become possessively jealous only once in the time they had been together. Brodi had introduced Zoe to trance dancing. Not the techno clubbing stuff (she made a mental note to introduce him to that at some point), but the yoga-ish stuff that he was into. The class lasted an hour and a half, taught at a yoga studio in town, and she'd had such a good time that when he asked her if she'd like to get a cup of coffee, she said yes.

Unfortunately, she'd had such a good time that she didn't realize that time had slipped away so quickly. By the time the two of them walked back into the lodge, she was 30 minutes late for a dinner date with Moby, and hadn't even realized it yet. She was reminded quickly when they walked through the doors, both of them laughing heartily.

"Well, now, isn't this a lovely site."

They looked over to the fireplace, where Moby was just standing up to greet them.

"Hey Moby," Brodi began.

"You've got some nerve, mate."

"Beg pardon?"

Zoe stepped in front of Brodi as Moby stepped around the sofa. "Moby, don't make an ass of yourself."

"Make an ass of MY self? Really, you can't come up with something better than that? You're LATE."

"Late?" Zoe looked at her watch. "Oh my God. I'm sorry, Moby. I didn't realize the time."

"Ah," Brodi said. "I'm sorry, Zoe. I didn't realize you had dinner plans or I would have had you back sooner."

"You shouldn't have HAD HER anywhere, California. But I'll deal with you in a bit."

"ExCUSE me?"

Zoe turned to Brodi briefly. "Brodi, thank you. I enjoyed it, and we'll talk later." She turned back to Moby. "YOU. I'd rather not have this argument in public, so if you want, follow me to my room. Otherwise, piss off."

She turned and stalked up the stairs. Moby, who was boiling by this point, watched her leave, then turned angrily back to Brodi.

"This isn't over by a long shot, mate," he hissed, then stomped off after Zoe.


	5. Chapter 5

Moby stormed into Zoe's room without knocking.

"What the HELL are you thinking?" she blasted as she walked out of her bathroom.

"What am I thinking? I'm not the one who got stood up."

"I didn't stand you up. I was LATE, and I apologized for that."

Moby started pacing the room. "You apologized for being late. You didn't apologize for being with HIM."

"Brodi?" She looked at him in shock. "You're not serious."

"Apparently YOU'RE not the one who's serious, if you just go running off with any bloke who comes around."

"Brodi is a FRIEND, you twit." Zoe growled as she took a step forward. "In case you've forgotten, I was hanging out with Brodi long before you and I so much as smacked into each other on the slopes."

"Friend? What's wrong with Elise? Allegra?"

"I can't believe you." Now Zoe started pacing the room. "You do NOT pick my friends. Allegra is a snotty little rude brat, and Elise is prissier than you are. And while we're on the subject of Elise…in case you haven't noticed, Brodi is crazy about her. He practically trips over himself any time she's around, and she takes three times as long to get ready for anything if she knows he's going to be there. She just won't admit that she cares about him."

"Or maybe she thinks he's too busy with you."

Zoe let out a growl of exasperation. "For the last time, you do. not. pick. my friends. I'm with you, and I'm not going to leave you for someone else. However, if you keep this up, you'll find yourself alone because of your behavior. You will not control me. Do try and you will find yourself lost."

Zoe let that sink in for a moment, as she seemed to have finally stunned him into silence.

"Now. If you still want to go to dinner, I'm game. Otherwise, you can piss off and get the hell out of my room."

Moby turned and walked out of the room, leaving her standing there in the middle of the floor. Ten seconds later, though, he poked his head back into her room.

"Well, are you coming? I'm starving, for the love of…"


	6. Chapter 6

Zoe had to smile to herself as she shook herself from her revelry. That argument had set the tone for the rest of their relationship. They'd had a long talk that night, and the two of them had come to an agreement. They were both works in progress (wouldn't Brodi be proud of that admittance?) and would work together through differences. Moby still had jealous streaks from time to time, but he was more conscious of them now and was working through his reaction to them. She, on the other hand, didn't react as strongly to his jealousy. She would still put him in his place, and they still argued, but much like that first big fight most of their arguments burned hot and went out fast.

It was with these thoughts that she picked up the phone to call Moby. He didn't pick up, so it went to voicemail. She left a voice, then sent a backup text on her MComm.

"Hey lover. Care for lunch? Come find me."

She figured she might as well get some practice in while she waited, so she grabbed her board and headed out for the slopes, creating a mental blueprint for the next big trick combo she wanted to debut at her next event. She was feeling antsy for some reason, and her nap had almost recharged her TOO much. Time to go burn off some energy.


	7. Chapter 7

"DAMN it!"

Zoe stomped furiously into the kitchen and yanked open the refrigerator door, then slammed it shut without even looking inside. Then, she yanked the silverware drawer completely out, sending it crashing to the floor, cutlery flying everywhere.

"Perfect!" she snarled, dropping to her knees to toss bunches of silverware back into the drawer

"Tough morning, babe?"

"What?" Zoe looked up as Brodi walked over to her, tossing a couple of forks into the drawer. "Oh, hi, Brodi. I didn't see you. Uh, how long have you been in here?"

"I was here when you came in." he said simply, turning back to her after retrieving a butter knife from underneath the table. "Want to talk about it?"

"The spoons?" Zoe looked down at her hands, still so stunned that she hadn't seen him that she forgot to be angry when he burst out laughing.

"Well, we could, if you wish, though I meant whatever is bothering you. Are you sure you're OK?"

Brodi stood and offered her a hand up, which she promptly ignored as she stood up on her own.

"I'm fine. Just frustrated with a trick I'm working on." She picked up the drawer and carried over to the dishwasher. "I hope this thing is ready to go, because I'll be damned if I'm washing these all by hand, even if it was my fault."

"Technical problems? Problems landing?"

"Oh, I land all right. Right on my ass."

Brodi leaned against the counter and folded his arms as he watched her dump the drawer contents into the cutlery basket. "Want me to watch a few jumps to give you an objective view?"

Zoe laughed. "So you can tell me to go meditate and visualize? No thanks, honey. I know what the problem is. I'm trying to combine a Pommel with a couple of other tricks, and my right leg keeps twitching and locking up in the transition. It'll be fine."

Brodi nodded and returned to the table, taking a sip of his herbal tea before he returned his attention to her. "Maybe you pulled a muscle? You could go to PT and have them look at it. Or I could take a look."

"And be responsible for Moby plowing you over next time you two race together? No, thanks. I'm really fine."

"Who am I supposed to mow down?" Moby responded as he burst into the room with his usual energy.

"Me," said Brodi matter-of-factly as he took another sip of tea. "Zoe's having trouble with her leg and thinks you might take it personally if I take a look at it."

"I might at that, mate," Moby replied, lifting Zoe for a second and kissing her as her feet touched the floor again. "Now, why does the nice man think you're hurt, little one?"

"It's just a TWITCH!" Zoe groaned as she smacked Moby's chest. "I'm fine. Now let go of me and let me take you to lunch. Care to join us, Zen?"

Brodi shook his head. "I've already eaten, but thanks. Look, you don't have an event for a day or two. Lay off practice and rest your leg…you may just be overtired. Forget about the trick problems, and come back to it with a fresh mind."

"I don't believe this," Zoe said as she started for the door. "I think he just managed to tell me to go meditate after all that."

Moby chuckled as he followed her out, and they heard Brodi's robust laughter following them into the lounge as the kitchen door shut.


	8. Chapter 8

A couple of hours later, Brodi had all but forgotten about the kitchen incident as he claimed his favorite spot in front of the fireplace and pulled out a book. He was lost deep in the pages of Thich Nhat Hanh when Moby burst through the door looking panicked.

"Brodi! Have you seen Payne?"

"Not since she left with you earlier. What's wrong?"

"Maybe nothing," he yelled over his shoulder as he headed for the stairs. "But M-Comm me if you see her? I'm going to check her room."

"Will do!"

Brodi tried to return to his book, but something about the encounter unsettled him. Zoe's interaction earlier, and now…

"Get out of your ead, Brodi," he scolded himself. "You don't know what, if anything happened. Maybe they just argued."

But Moby wouldn't be panicked over an argument. Would he?

He tried to return to his book once more, but even the title seemed to be mocking him. _Peace Is Every Step._

That's it! He thought. A walking meditation. Maybe that would put his mind at ease. He set is book down and headed for the door. He was just reaching for the door to the foyer when it opened on its own.

"Zoe! What are you…oh, God!"

Brodi caught Zoe as she fell forward, pale and cold. She gripped his arm as he lowered her to the floor.

"Zen. I messed…messed up. Need help."

"Shhhh. I'll get help. Just hang on."

Brodi called the lodge's emergency number and gave orders for an ambulance. Then e called Moby to meet them at the front door. It was only when he pushed the "end" button that he saw the stain on the phone, and realized that his hand was warm and sticky.

"Zoe…"

"I slowed it down. But it's not stopping. Couldn't get it tight enough."

It was then that he noticed her makeshift tourniquet.

"It's OK. We'll take care of it."

He wanted to ask her what happened, but realized that wasting words would be pointless. So he did what he knew how to do: keep her calm, and elevate and compress her forearm while he waited for EMS. Then his job was to keep Moby from freaking out once the EMS guys took over. He got him pulled to the side and pinned to the wall, and they were off as soon as the ambulance pulled away.


	9. Chapter 9

Brodi wasn't sure when he pulled himself off of autopilot, but his first clear memory was pulling his shirt sleeve back down after he donated blood.

"Any news?" Eddie asked as he walked into the waiting room.

"Uh, no." Brodi replied, walking over to the window and sitting down beside Elise, who immediately leaned her head on his shoulder. "I just came from donating blood. O Neg, universal donor. I can replenish whatever they had to use for Zoe."

"Why did she do it?"

"I don't know that she DID anything, Eddie. Let's not make assumptions until we talk to her, OK?"

"No one is talking to her until I get to her first." Moby spat as he stood up from the corner where he'd been sitting. "I knew there'd be trouble today, the way she left downtown."

"Oh?" Elise said, lifting her head from Brodi's shoulder. "You and Brodi were the only ones to see her today. What was going on?"

Brodi shrugged. "Problems with a trick she was working on. Just frustrated. Other than that, she was pure Zoe."

"She decked a street preacher downtown."

Everyone looked at Moby, stunned.

"She did WHAT?"

Moby shrugged. "Don't know what set 'er off. She was really buggered, though, and I couldn't catch her."

Moby looked like he was about to say something else when a man in hospital scrubs walked in and looked around the waiting room.

"Coworkers of Zoe Payne?"

"Here!" Brodi called. The older man walked over to them and introduced himself.

"I'm Dr. Michaels, and I treated Miss Payne when she was brought in. We stitched her up, and she's stable. She can go home tonight, if we can ascertain that she's not a danger to herself."

"If you'll let me talk to her," Moby began, "I can tell you if you can release her into my care."

"And you are…"

"Moby Jones. I'm her fiancé."

Moby subtly kicked Elise before she could say anything, and Dr. Michaels nodded.

"She's in room 115. Only one or two at a time, though, please."


	10. Chapter 10

Zoe had momentarily given up on getting out of her restraints and was resting…damn, she was tired…when the door opened and a grim-looking Moby walked in.

"Moby! Hey, hot stuff."

Moby made no reply as he walked over to the bed. He rested his hand on the rail near where her wrist was tethered. He almost took hold of her hand, but then his hand twitched and stiffened, and he took hold of the rail instead.

"Moby?"

Still more silence, his jaw tight.

"Are you going to say something, or did you come in here just to glare at me?"

"Why, Zoe? Can you answer me that?"

"Why what?"

He gestured to the arm that was bandaged nearly to her elbow.

"I don't know. You'll have to ask the patch of black ice that I slipped on."

"Oh come on, Zo. Really now."

"You think I…jeez, your worse than that ass doctor. Get out."

"Zoe, if I'm to convince them to release you into my care, I need to know the truth."

"Truth? You want the truth? The truth is, if I ever decide to kill myself, there won't be anyone around to rescue me. Now, I've TOLD you the truth. And here's another little bit of truth for you to chew on. I'll rot in here before I'm going anywhere with you. Get. The Hell. Out."

"You are IMPOSSIBLE, woman."

Zoe just closed her eyes and didn't respond. She sighed—she wasn't sure if it was with relief or frustration—as Moby stomped out. She thought about trying to get her wrists out of the restraints again, but the visit from Moby had further exhausted her. She would just rest another moment or two and then figure out what was next.

Then, the door started opening again.

"When I told you to get the hell out, I meant to stay out."

Zoe didn't even turn her head towards the door, figuring Moby was back for round two.

"I'll remember that if you tell me to get out."

"Brodi!"

"Hey, kiddo. What's up?"

"I might be telling you to get out. I'm too tired to argue."

"That's fair. But I'm not here to argue," he stated as he leaned forward, resting his arms on the bed rail. "Just here to see how a friend is doing."

"No lectures?"

"No lectures."

Zoe sighed, with relief this time, and closed her eyes. "Then you can stay if you like." She was silent for a moment, then opened her eyes and looked back at her friend. "I suppose you saw Moby."

Brodi nodded. "He's worried."

"No one will listen to me."

"Well," he said softly as he undid the tether closest to him, "I'm all ears. Will I do?"

Zoe watched, astonished, as he undid the other restraint, then put the rail down and sat beside her holding her hand.

"You aren't afraid I'm going to hurt myself?"

"Should I be?"

"Not fair to answer a question with a question."

Brodi chuckled and nodded.

"Then how about this. I figure that, 1, I would talk to you first and find out what really happened before assuming anything, and 2, you wouldn't have let me help you if you didn't want help."

Zoe nodded and closed her eyes as she let Brodi massage her hand. "Finally someone with half a brain."

"So how about it?"

Zoe opened her eyes. "How about what?

"What happened? You said no one would listen to you. I'm here. I'll listen. And I promise I won't just tell you to go meditate," Brodi hesitated a moment to wink at her, "grasshopper."

Zoe laughed in spite of herself.

"You've got to believe me, Zen. I did NOT attempt suicide."

"I believe you."

"But I did do something stupid. Ever have something so bad happen, you completely numb out? But then you hate the numb so much, you'd do anything to feel something?"

Brodi closed is eyes and nodded. He knew he wasn't going to like where this was going, and he didn't trust his voice to speak.

"So yeah, I guess I'm telling you that I'm a cutter. Used to be, anyway. Usually barely more than scratches; nothing horrendous, nothing terribly noticeable. When I started boarding, it tapered off so much that I actually stopped. Life has been working. I push myself enough on the slopes, I get all the rush I need."

"So what changed?"

Zoe pushed herself up so she was sitting facing Brodi. She still felt like a child sitting next to him, because of the size difference, but she knew she was safe with him.

"The leg twitching and locking up. It started about a week ago. After I got an invitation to a cousin's wedding. Officiated by my older sister's husband."

"Your brother-in-law is a minister?"

"My sister's husband is a minister." Zoe spat. "He's nothing to me."

"OK. I'm sorry. Your sister's husband. Go on."

Zoe closed her eyes again, remaining silent for so long that Brodi was afraid he had angered her into silence. He let the silence draw out a moment longer, then touched her arm gently.

"Zo…."

"My mother took on a second job. On the days when I took gymnastics, my sister's husband would pick me up. But he wouldn't take me straight home."

Brodi didn't know what to say, but he knew what was coming, so he just squeezed her noninjured hand. "I'm still here. Go on."

"He, ah…he did things that you just shouldn't do to a 12 year old girl. And he told me…he told me that God would forgive me for tempting him."

"God, honey, I'm so sorry."

"It happened once more. After that I refused to go to gymnastics class. I'd taken classes since preschool. I was good. My mom and sister wouldn't believe me, so I gave it up."

Brodi moved closer to her and took her into his arms. She let herself be held for a moment, then pulled back.

"Did the street preacher today…"

"I said a polite "no thank you" at first. Then I told him to buzz off. I only decked him after he told me that God would forgive me. I don't think I even made a conscious connection to it. I just snapped. Decked him and ran. Took a walk, bought a straight razor. Except I slipped on the ice while I was cutting, and it went a lot deeper, and a lot longer, than I intended. I barely made it back to the lodge. Brodi, you saved my life. But I can promise you, it was just an accident. You have to believe me."

Brodi leaned forward and hugged Zoe, kissing her cheek as he pulled away.

"I do believe you. And I'll talk to Dr. Michaels. If he won't release you on your own, maybe I can convince him…"

"I'm not going ANYWHERE with Moby."

"that I can keep an eye on you. Don't worry…I doubt he'll release you to Moby once he finds out he's only 19."

**********

Author's note: I really do know someone that had something similar happen...brother-in-law who was a minister, who was told "God will forgive you for tempting me." This friend had a trill in her voice when she sang that she couldn't get rid of...a body memory. I'm trying to approach it this way with Zoe.


End file.
